What are we going to do about a pass rusher?

I had a feeling we weren't going to make a splash in free agency as usual, which is normally okay but we have a glaring need for a dominant pass rusher. My question is, since we won't acquire one in FA, who do we get in the draft that fills this role right away?

Our secondary was pretty outstanding last year, never mind the fact that we gave up so many yards.. but when you lead the league in interceptions then that means the ball is being thrown up too many times and we have no one at the QB. Who do we get to resolve this issue? I honestly think even having a decent pass rush would have automatically sealed out SB fate last season.

I think you make mistakes if you force the issue. If you have a problem its not a sure thing that there is a solution availabe. Snyder tried to fill a need of a WR yesterday and spent top dollar on a decent player. The perceived need was lessened but not solved and now they have less money to address other needs.

So where does are pass rush come from? I think if the players who played much better in 2010 than they did in 2011, Raji, Tramon, Shields, and maybe Zombo, we will see significant defensive improvement. Hopefully these players feel embarrassed to have let the whole team down and they are working hard right now to get back.

Well, the short answer is we need another OLB. The other positions will help and I wouldn't turn away a pass rushing interior lineman, but the key is the outside backers.

The whole 3-4 scheme depends on them. They are the designated pass rushers, the playmakers. Running the scheme without those bookends is the defensive equivalent of the Martz scheme in Chicago--no wideouts and a crappy pass blocking line.

You need your nose tackle, otherwise teams will just run up the middle. We have two capable options in Raji and Pickett. After that, you need your OLBs.

The two ends can be 'just guys' when you're in base. When you're in nickel, the front would be something like Matthews, Raji, "Just A Guy End," and "Other Awesome Backer". The Other End needs to be just good enough to win some of his one-on-one battles.

In theory, the two backers will win most of their one-on-ones. So should Raji. If that's the case, you'd need 7 guys to block our 4 man rush: 2 for Matthews, 2 for Raji, 2 for Other OLB, and 1 for Other End.

The biggest benefit to picking up another defensive lineman would be resting Raji on running downs, keeping him fresh and ready for passing downs.

We only lost 2 games last year. Both were due to the offense not the defense.

That being said if you draft someone you don't expect them to excel for at least a season or two. Therefore the answer is someone that's already on the team. Who? No idea. But the defense will get better.

Who are the Packers going to draft to put pressure on the QB? Even Thompson doesn’t know now because it depends upon how the draft goes. And if they conduct their draft prep as they have in the past, their draft board isn’t finalized yet. What he does know is whether or not there is a second tier UFA he really wants to pursue but of course there’s no way for us to know that. I’ll be happy if he fills any need in UFA, like OC, just so it isn’t as great a need in the draft.

IMO the secondary looked worse than they played because of the lack of pressure on opposing QBs, but as a group they tackled horribly and that had nothing to do with the lack of pressure. So in addition to an infusion of talent on D, those already on the roster on that side of the ball have to play better this season. IMO that includes (but isn’t limited to) players like Raji and Hawk as well has Tramon Williams, Burnett, and Shields. I also expect a player like So’oto, House, Lattimore, Smith or who-knows-who to step up and contribute on that side of the ball.

What are they going to do about the pass rush? Probably: 1) Expect improved play by some starters on D; 2) Expect the progress of at least one youngster already on the roster; and 3) Add two or more draftees to help or push those ahead of them on the depth chart. And Thompson may dip his toe into UFA too but my guess is if he does, it'll be for an OC.

I firmly believe that it wasn't a defensive personnel problem last year. It was a chemistry and trust problem. It hurt to lose Nick and Cullen. But bringing in a guy wouldn't have fixed the team.

I agree and disagree with you. I agree with your point on chemistry, but I disagree with the idea of bringing in someone that could help the defense out right away. Take Jared Allen for example, he is a one-man wrecking ball.. and if he were in a Packers jersey I think you could safely assume we would probably be in a better position on the defensive side of the ball.

We only lost 2 games last year. Both were due to the offense not the defense.

The loss against Kansas City was definitely more offensive than defensive, but come on.. the game against the Giants was terrible on both sides of the ball, but I still blame the defense more. That hail-mary touch down was the real nail in the coffin, team-deflating play.

I firmly believe that it wasn't a defensive personnel problem last year. It was a chemistry and trust problem. It hurt to lose Nick and Cullen. But bringing in a guy wouldn't have fixed the team.

I agree and disagree with you. I agree with your point on chemistry, but I disagree with the idea of bringing in someone that could help the defense out right away. Take Jared Allen for example, he is a one-man wrecking ball.. and if he were in a Packers jersey I think you could safely assume we would probably be in a better position on the defensive side of the ball.

We only lost 2 games last year. Both were due to the offense not the defense.

The loss against Kansas City was definitely more offensive than defensive, but come on.. the game against the Giants was terrible on both sides of the ball, but I still blame the defense more. That hail-mary touch down was the real nail in the coffin, team-deflating play.

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Jared Allen is not coming to the packers. Mario Williams isn't either. We can't afford them and it's an overreaction to a fixable problem.

Not even sure Allen would fit in our defense.

As far as the giants game the defense held the giants scoreless in the 3rd. The giants didn't score 56. It wasn't the cardinals playoff game. The players dropped ball after ball and Rodgers looked terrible unless he was running.

Does anybody know what happened to Ricky Elmore? OLB we drafted in like 7th round last year? I remember seeing video of him (most notably one where he jumps out of a 4ft. Pool) and thinking he was going to be nice late round pick but never heard anything on him all year

Jared Allen is not coming to the packers. Mario Williams isn't either. We can't afford them and it's an overreaction to a fixable problem.

Not even sure Allen would fit in our defense.

As far as the giants game the defense held the giants scoreless in the 3rd. The giants didn't score 56. It wasn't the cardinals playoff game. The players dropped ball after ball and Rodgers looked terrible unless he was running.

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Williams Goes to the Bills, I would have actually started to be concerned if he had gone to the Bears. agree 100% with the rest.

Does anybody know what happened to Ricky Elmore? OLB we drafted in like 7th round last year? I remember seeing video of him (most notably one where he jumps out of a 4ft. Pool) and thinking he was going to be nice late round pick but never heard anything on him all year

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For some reason I remember reading somewhere he was cut pretty early during training camp last summer.

Capers also likes to use the ILB'rs in some blitz packages bringing one or both and the tradeoff in spreading the coverage and that pressure working lost more than it won. It looked to me like someone was always there when Hawk came and he seldom won that battle and put pressure on the QB. You have to win the one on one's in this league.

I had a feeling we weren't going to make a splash in free agency as usual, which is normally okay but we have a glaring need for a dominant pass rusher. My question is, since we won't acquire one in FA, who do we get in the draft that fills this role right away?

Our secondary was pretty outstanding last year, never mind the fact that we gave up so many yards.. but when you lead the league in interceptions then that means the ball is being thrown up too many times and we have no one at the QB. Who do we get to resolve this issue? I honestly think even having a decent pass rush would have automatically sealed out SB fate last season.

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Winning in March != winning in Jan. or Feb. Plus, most of these teams participating in the first couple of days of free agency are vastly overpaying, and history has shown most of the players taken in the early stages of free agency seldom live up to the contract.

Ted likes to let the market settle before looking into free agency. Find out what the market is for a player and then decide if it's worth it or not. And to be honest, we don't know at this point if he's been out to anyone, or if he's just kicking back and playing Madden. While I don't expect him to do much of anything in free agency, it's possible he surprises us all.

I don't care how Ted does it, be it free agency or the draft or undfrafted free agency, but the DE and the OLB opposite clay need to be upgraded. Walden and Wilson/Neal still suck regardless of Collins being healthy or not.

Does anybody know what happened to Ricky Elmore? OLB we drafted in like 7th round last year? I remember seeing video of him (most notably one where he jumps out of a 4ft. Pool) and thinking he was going to be nice late round pick but never heard anything on him all year

I blame the offense for the Defense having a horrible year. Here is why, I believe that the Defense became to dependant and enamored with the offense. I believe that they felt no matter what, the offense was going to score more points than the other team and all that they had to do was to make sure that they force a turnover at some point in the game to soldify a win. They knew that regardless of how bad they played, the offense was going to win the game for them. I noticed that when MM would defer the kick off, on numerous occasions the offense would score before the half and after the half to put the game away. If the other team would get close, the D would force a turnover(INT) to get the O another chance to score. They really did not care how many yards they were giving up! I told a lot of people throughout the season that if you want to beat the PACK, you have to out score them. It does not matter how many yards they are giving up. To be the PACK you have to win a shoot out.

I blame the offense for the Defense having a horrible year. Here is why, I believe that the Defense became to dependant and enamored with the offense. I believe that they felt no matter what, the offense was going to score more points than the other team and all that they had to do was to make sure that they force a turnover at some point in the game to soldify a win. They knew that regardless of how bad they played, the offense was going to win the game for them. I noticed that when MM would defer the kick off, on numerous occasions the offense would score before the half and after the half to put the game away. If the other team would get close, the D would force a turnover(INT) to get the O another chance to score. They really did not care how many yards they were giving up! I told a lot of people throughout the season that if you want to beat the PACK, you have to out score them. It does not matter how many yards they are giving up. To be the PACK you have to win a shoot out.

Build a Time Machine, travel to the future, hop on a computer...
Wikipedia the NFL draft/Pro Football Reference, figure out who became an All Pro Pass Rusher in the NFL Drafts from 2012 - idk....
come back to present day, find a Packer player personal person, hand him a list of the future all pro Pass Rushers and what not...Then kick back and giggle....

heck, now that I think about it...look up all the potential future pro bowlers... kickers/qbs/wrs/etc.

Build a Time Machine, travel to the future, hop on a computer...
Wikipedia the NFL draft/Pro Football Reference, figure out who became an All Pro Pass Rusher in the NFL Drafts from 2012 - idk....
come back to present day, find a Packer player personal person, hand him a list of the future all pro Pass Rushers and what not...Then kick back and giggle....

heck, now that I think about it...look up all the potential future pro bowlers... kickers/qbs/wrs/etc.

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If I had a time machine helping out the packers draft would be waaaaaaaaay down on my list